


Imagine Me and You (So Happy Together)

by the_nvisiblegirl



Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV)
Genre: 31 Days Writing Challenge, Canon Compliant, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, F/F, Fluff, One Shot Collection, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-19
Updated: 2020-08-20
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:33:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 32
Words: 12,384
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25384606
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_nvisiblegirl/pseuds/the_nvisiblegirl
Summary: Or: 31 Days of AvalanceA collection of short one shots based on one-line dialogue prompts. Updated daily.
Relationships: Sara Lance/Ava Sharpe
Comments: 185
Kudos: 403





	1. “Your heartbeat’s really loud.”

**Author's Note:**

> Oh hey yes I'm still alive (more or less), but I've been hit with a case of severe writer's block so I'm not getting anywhere with all my other multi chapter stories and one shots. Therefore, after stumbling upon a Tumblr post with about a billion one-sentence prompts, I decided to pick 31 and write a drabble or short one shot every day around that one line. All Avalance. All canon-compliant. All happy (I think; we'll see).
> 
> Enjoy, punks.

They’re halfway through _The Silence of the Lambs_ when, just as Jodie Foster is about to tell Hannibal Lecter about her childhood trauma, Sara mumbles, “Your heartbeat’s really loud.”

Her head is still on Ava’s chest and, despite the comment, she doesn’t seem to mind. She does this sometimes. Just makes an observation, a statement out of the blue, more to herself than anyone else. Ava enjoys these moments because they give her a glimpse into the other woman’s head—a vast and mysterious place. Even though they know each other so well after being together for almost four years, she still doesn’t understand how Sara’s brain works sometimes. How she can jump from one thought to the other without missing a beat. How she comes up with watertight plans in a matter of seconds. How she remembers the smallest details from ages ago.

“Sorry, I’ll turn up the volume.”

She’s about to reach for the remote when Sara’s hand slips from her abdomen and pins her arm in place just out of reach of it.

“I’m not complaining. It’s nice.” Her lips press against Ava’s neck. “Want me to make it beat even louder?”

Before Ava can so much as blink Sara has sat up, effectively straddling her. She smirks.

“Take your shirt off,” she orders, and Ava’s heart immediately speeds up at the thought of what’s about to happen.


	2. "You asleep?"

Sara’d done the exact opposite of tossing and turning for the better part of the last hour—had just laid flat on her back and stared at the ceiling—but she still hadn’t been able to fall asleep because her brain just wouldn’t shut up, no matter what she tried.

Yes, the day had been fairly eventful—they’d run into both Anne Frank and Martin Luther King Jr. at Audrey Hepburn’s thirteenth birthday party—but it wasn’t the mission as such that kept her so occupied. It was the woman currently next to her in bed.

Ava had been injured during their attempt to fix the timeline. Had gotten caught in the crossfire—quite literally—and taken a bullet to the shoulder. Nothing life-threatening (luckily) but it had still shaken Sara to the core. Seeing her girlfriend on the ground in an ever-growing puddle of her own blood was an image that would forever be burnt into her memory.

“You asleep?” Sara whispered, hoping that the other woman was and wasn’t at the same time.

“Mm-mm,” came a mumble from beneath the covers before the blonde turned around to face her. “What’s up, babe?”

She sounded tired—exhausted—and Sara immediately regretted rousing her. Ava needed sleep, she needed to recover; but Sara was feeling selfish right now.

She looked at the older woman in the semi-darkness of the room. Her nose. Her lips. The way her eyelashes curled against her fair skin.

A breath. Then—

“I want to marry you.”

“ _What_?” Ava exclaimed as she hoisted herself up onto her elbows.

“I’ve been thinking...”

“Evidently.”

Sara chuckled.

“Shut up, jerk, I’m trying to say something here.”

One of her hands reached out, taking a hold of Ava’s own.

“I don’t want to live without you ever again. Today made that very clear to me. So... let’s get married. Because I want this. I want _you_.”

For a moment Ava just stared at her, expression unreadable, before, slowly—very, very slowly—a smile spread across her face.

“Ok.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thoughts? Feelings? Concerns?


	3. “I like this, being so close to you.”

Ava sighed as she sank into the tub and let her head rest against the tiles behind her. The water was just the right temperature—so hot that it hurt a little bit when you first got in it—and smelled like an entire pine forest thanks to some fancy bath salts Nora had gotten her for Christmas. She closed her eyes.

Her day had been absolutely exhausting. Not only had Hank requested an impromptu meeting—and, subsequently, further pressured her to put the Legends on a tighter leash—there had also been an issue with the new office-wide system software and more than the usual amount of Gary shenanigans. So she deserved to soak in this tub for as long as it took for her headache to go away, thank you very much.

“Room for one more?” Sara’s voice suddenly startled her out of her thoughts and her eyes flew open.

The blonde was leaning against the doorframe, an amused smirk on her lips.

“There’s always room for you. C’mere,” Ava replied, reaching her right arm out toward her girlfriend.

Sara’s smirk turned into a genuine smile and she said, “Let me just get out of these clothes,” before reaching for her shoes.

She took off one piece at a time—slowly, deliberately—and Ava just marveled at the sight of the beautiful woman in front of her. God, how had she gotten so lucky?

Eventually, the blonde was fully naked and climbed into the tub. She situated herself in between her girlfriend’s legs and Ava immediately pulled her towards herself until her breasts were flush against the smaller woman’s back.

There was a special kind of intimacy to the moment; something inherently non-sexual even though they were both completely naked (and had had sex in a whole number of different bathtubs several times before). This was about connection. About unwinding. About letting your guard down and just _existing_ together.

“I like this, being so close to you.”

She pressed a kiss against the side of Sara’s neck.

“Mhm,” the blonde agreed and Ava could feel the sound reverberate against her chest. “It’s nice.”


	4. “I just—I’m breathless, okay? Whenever I’m with you, it happens.”

It’s 1928 and you’re in Berlin, strolling through the dark streets with Sara’s hand in yours. You brought her here because you thought she’d enjoy it—the music, the dancing, the burgeoning gay scene. Plus, you know an adorable restaurant serving the most delicious veal you’ve ever had and it seemed like the perfect location for a date.

And, all in all, it has been a perfect date. You ate. You danced. You weren't interrupted by stolen coats or time ships falling from the sky.

When the first drop of rain hits you, you look up and curse your own stupidity for not bringing an umbrella. You really should’ve checked the weather forecast before going.

While you hope that—maybe—it’ll just be a few drops, the rain intensifies. It’s not quite pouring yet, but you can feel your jacket getting wet.

You’re about to suggest that you portal back to the Waverider to get out of the rain but before you have a chance to, Sara pulls on your hand and starts running toward a little alcove a few yards ahead and you can’t help but let her pull you along.

“Come on!” she calls over her shoulder because, apparently, you aren’t moving fast enough for her liking.

You reach your hiding spot just in time because it starts pelting down a moment later.

The space is tiny, barely enough to shield the two of you. You’re close, bodies pressed together, noses almost touching, and you can feel her breath on your face. You shiver.

“You okay?” Sara asks, looking up at you with knitted eyebrows. And you don’t know what to say. Don’t know how to tell her what she does to you—whats she _means_ to you.

“I just—I’m breathless, okay?” you reply and let your tongue run across your upper lip. “Whenever I’m with you, it happens.”

And you didn’t mean to say that—this is only your second date, for God’s sake and definitely not the time for grand declarations of _something_ yet—but you just couldn’t keep the words from tumbling out. You want to laugh it off and tell her to just forget about it when she takes a hold of your face and your mind goes completely blank.

“Same,” she says before pressing you more firmly against the wall and kissing you.


	5. "You’ll always be safe with me.”

Looking back at it now, she’s not even sure whose idea it was in the first place. Probably Behrad’s. Or Nate’s. Maybe Charlie’s. Well, no matter who came up with it, the bottom line is that she’s currently crouched behind the desk in the library, a gun in each hand and strategizing how to best take out Astra (who she knows for a fact is hiding in the lab) without getting hit herself instead of spending a nice, calm evening with her girlfriend, a bottle of wine, and the latest episode of _American Horror Story_.

The team pitched the idea to them as a form of bonding exercise but Ava questions how much use this is with regard to team building when they’re playing every man for himself style—no teams, no alliances.

Gideon announces those who’ve been struck and, thus, eliminated like they’re taking part in the Hunger Games, so she knows that, at this point, it’s only Astra, Sara, and herself who are still in the game. The last time she’s seen her girlfriend the blonde shot Mick straight in the back of the head as part of a sneak attack during which she took out not only him but also John and Zari in rapid succession. Ava should have known that there was no way any of them could beat a reformed assassin in a game where killing people—even if only metaphorically—is the entire point.

She hears a creaking sound coming from the doorway then and peers around the side of the desk, but no one is there so she returns to her previous position and almost has a heart attack when, suddenly, there’s another body right next to hers.

“Found you,” Sara says with a smirk, and Ava smacks her arm reflexively.

“You scared the _shit_ out of me, you jerk. What the hell?”

“Sorry, babe. Old assassin habits.”

Ava glowers at her before slowly lowering her weapons to the floor.

“Right, do what you came here to do, then.”

She isn’t mad that Sara found her, not exactly, but she _is_ annoyed that it means that she’s lost. Because she likes to win—even when it’s something as inconsequential as a game of paintball.

But—instead of taking her out—Sara just chuckles, dropping her own gun onto her lap.

“Oh, I’m not gonna eliminate you.”

“ _What_? Why not?”

“You’re my girlfriend. I’m not shooting my own girlfriend.”

“But…”

“No buts. I told you I’m always on your team. Even when we’re not allowed teams. You’ll always be safe with me.”

Her words are earnest and Ava is immediately certain that this isn’t a trap. Sara means it. She smiles. Leans in. Cups Sara’s face.

Just as she’s about to press her lips to the other woman’s she hears a pop and feels a sharp pain against her side. Another pop. Sara gasps against her mouth a second later.

“Sappy fools,” she hears Astra’s voice to her left before Gideon announces that there is a winner.


	6. “I’ll never give you up.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short but sweet (I hope).
> 
> Also, thank you for every single comment and kudos. Even though this exercise is mostly for myself, they never fail to put a smile on my face and really motivate me to keep going!

She’s ecstatic when she first sees the email. Nate listened to all of Stabcast and wrote a review of it on his blog. To be honest, she didn’t know he even has a blog to begin with but oh well. It’s exciting that at least one of the Legends has finally come to their senses and given her podcast a shot.

Her excitement must be visible because Sara looks up from the book she’s currently reading next to her on the couch.

“What’s up, babe? You’re practically vibrating.”

“Nate wrote a Stabcast review.”

“Nerds,” the blonde chuckles but sits up and leans closer to Ava and her laptop anyway. “Let’s hear it then.”

So Ava clicks the link Nate added, but instead of seeing a review—or any written text, for that matter—a song Ava has never heard before starts blaring over the speakers. She looks at the woman next to her, confused, hoping for an explanation.

But Sara only laughs.

“Congratulations! You’ve just been rickrolled, babe.”

“What?”

“It’s a joke.”

Ava’s eyebrows knit together in befuddlement.

“I don’t get it. What does it mean?”

The other woman’s laughter dies down and, instead, her face goes soft as she looks at the genuine confusion on her girlfriend’s face. It doesn’t happen often because, usually, Ava knows what’s going on at all times but it’s a good look on her. It’s cute—adorable, even.

“It means that the team cares about you,” Sara says softly, a smile playing at the corners of her lips.

“It does?”

“Mhm,” Sara nods as one of her legs slides across both of Ava’s until she’s effectively straddling the taller woman. “And so do I. I’ll never give you up.”

A chuckle escapes Ava’s mouth. She gets it now. (Kind of.)

“Or let me down?”

“Exactly,” Sara confirms, letting her hands wander into the other woman’s hair and pulling her mouth to her own.


	7. "I sleep better if you're around."

The bedroom is dark when Sara enters, which doesn’t surprise her all that much considering that it’s currently 3.17AM. Slowly, she makes her way toward the bed, mindful of the sleeping woman in it.

She’s just put her right knee down on the mattress when she hears a muffled, “Sara?” from underneath the covers before a head of blonde hair appears.

“Hi baby,” the woman in question whispers, pressing a kiss against her girlfriend’s forehead.

“Mmm—missed you.”

It’s mumbled, barely audible, and she can tell by the sound of the other woman’s voice that Ava’s more asleep than awake right now and probably won’t remember any part of this conversation come morning. She smiles.

“I missed you, too,” she echoes as she lifts the duvet slightly to slide underneath.

Ava’s on her side, nose pressed into the pillow, and Sara gets as close as she can without fully waking the blonde up.

It appears to be a futile attempt, though, because a moment later her girlfriend’s eyes open.

“I’m glad you’re back,” she says quietly, seeming infinitely more awake than before. “I sleep better if you’re around.”

Sara chuckles.

“You just sleep _more_ when I’m around because you don’t have to get up every two hours.”

Gently, her fingers brush some of Ava’s hair out of her face.

“How was she?”

A smile breaks out on the blonde’s face.

“Very good. Almost slept through the night on Wednesday.”

“Oh wow. I—” Sara starts but is interrupted by the sound of crying coming through the baby monitor on her girlfriend’s nightstand.

Ava snuggles closer against her.

“She knows you’re back. She missed her mommy,” the blonde mumbles, her lips brush against Sara’s neck with every word.

“You’re just saying that so I get up to feed her.”

Ava turns her head then, pressing it back into the pillow.

“Sorry, I can’t hear you, I’m asleep.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear to God, an Avalance baby is my kryptonite.


	8. “I like this. A quiet breakfast with you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Super short one today!

“I like this. A quiet breakfast with you,” Ava said as she put some more strawberry jam on her croissant before taking a bite. Going to Italy had definitely been the right decision. The view from the balcony of their hotel room alone was worth it. Nothing but the deep blue sea stretching out in front of them for miles and miles.

“Though, honestly, I’m still expecting one of the team to just appear out of thin air any minute now.”

Across the small table Sara smiled, leaning back in her chair and letting her gaze wander from Ava to the horizon and back. She’d never felt quite so at peace with herself and the world.

“They know better than to crash our honeymoon,” she countered as she took a hold of her wife’s hand where a brand new diamond ring sparkled in the morning sunlight.

Ava gave Sara’s fingers a squeeze.

“They crashed our first date, babe.”

“True,” Sara chuckled. “Well, let’s hope they learned their lesson, then. Cause there’s no way I’m leaving this place before trying every single gelato flavor the ice cream parlor downstairs has to offer.”


	9. “You keep staring at me instead of watching the film. What’s up?”

They’re five minutes into _Captain Marvel_ and she has spent at least four and a half of those minutes _not_ paying attention to the movie at all. It’s not what she planned on doing because, actually, she’s wanted to see _Captain Marvel_ for ages. But Ava is wearing a blouse that’s unbuttoned to just south of decent and she can’t help but _look_.

She’s basically a ninja, though, so she doesn’t think her girlfriend has noticed how damn _distracted_ she is by the amount of skin on display. And it’s ridiculous because she’s seen Ava’s body—fully naked in all its glory—a million times but something about the way the sides of her breasts are peaking out from beneath the thin blue material right now is driving Sara absolutely wild.

It’s another five minutes later when, suddenly, Ava presses pause before accusing, “You keep staring at me instead of watching the film,” without turning to look at the other woman. From the way her shoulders are tensed, however, Sara knows exactly what she’s thinking, so she isn’t at all surprised when she eventually faces her with a concerned expression.

“What’s up?” she asks softly, one hand reaching for Sara’s thigh.

The blonde wants to answer, she really does, but Ava’s touch—even if it’s meant to be comforting, even if it’s only her knee, even if it’s through a layer of fabric—is making it very hard to form any kind of coherent thought because, apparently, she’s just incredibly horny tonight.

So, instead, she keeps on staring at the other woman, eyes darting between her face and her cleavage.

Slowly, very slowly a smirk spreads across Ava’s face as she seems to catch on to what is happening and, without breaking eye contact, starts unbuttoning her shirt even further.

“See something you like, Captain Lance?” she teases.

Before she can so much as blink, Sara’s on her lap, her hands pushing the blouse off the taller woman’s shoulders altogether.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote this one before y'all asked for sex because I write them a couple days in advance, so... sorry?


	10. “Are we really doing this? Are we really slow-dancing?”

When Sara comes into the kitchen she notices three things:

    1. Ava is making lasagna.
    2. Ava is listening to Taylor Swift.
    3. Ava is barefoot.



Really, none of these are things that haven’t happened before. Ava’s lasagna is legendary, especially if you ask the crew of the Waverider. Sara knows Ava’s guilty pleasure is listening to Taylor Swift after a long day. And, at home, Ava prefers to not wear shoes and/or socks.

So there’s nothing extraordinary or particularly special about the scene in front of her—except for the fact that Ava is singing along to “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” under her breath and there’s bolognese sauce on her cheek and Sara is very much, extremely, incredibly in love with her.

The other woman is so absorbed in what she is doing that she doesn’t notice Sara until the blonde steps up behind her and wraps her arms around her abdomen. (To her credit, Ava doesn’t even flinch. She's lived with a reformed assassin long enough.)

“Hey babe,” Sara says, pressing a kiss to her girlfriend’s spine. “Enjoying yourself?”

Ava chuckles and Sara can feel it vibrate against her chest.

“I was wondering where you were,” Ava says as she covers Sara’s hands on her stomach with her own.

As she speaks, the song coming through the speakers changes to one that Sara only vaguely recognizes. It’s slower, less breakup and more honeymoon phase. She smiles.

“Turn around,” she says after a couple of bars, pulling her arms back slightly so her hands rest on Ava’s hips instead.

“Why?”

“You’ll see.”

She turns.

Immediately, Sara wraps her arms around her again, pulls her close. Then, she starts swaying just as the song moves into the chorus.

_Can I go where you go?_

_Can we always be this close forever and ever?_

_And ah, take me out, and take me home_

_You're my, my, my, my lover_

It takes Ava a second to catch on to what is happening.

“Are we really doing this? Are we really slow-dancing?” she laughs, trying to break out of Sara’s embrace but the blonde only tightens her hold.

“We sure as hell are so get with the program.”

Ava lets out another round of laughter but complies, hands running up Sara’s back until they rest on her shoulder blades as they slowly continue to sway from side to side in the middle of kitchen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm literally obsessed with Taylor Swift's music all of a sudden since she released her new album so, naturally, my new head canon is that Ava guilty-pleasure listens to Tay Tay.
> 
> Also, the song they're dancing to is "Lover."


	11. “You’re the best thing to have ever happened to me.”

When Sara enters the room Ava is crying, which, in Sara’s books, is cause for immediate concern because Ava doesn’t cry. She hates crying—tries to actively avoid it as much as possible and only gives in when she has completely given up.

So, yes, Sara is worried.

“Babe, hey, what’s up?" she asks softly as she makes her way to the bed. She goes slowly, carefully, one step at a time because she doesn’t want to spook the other woman.

Ava looks up. Sees her. Cries even harder.

_Fuck._

“Talk to me, baby. I’m worried.”

She sits down on the edge of the bed, close enough to Ava so that she can take the hand Sara offers her by sliding it toward her across the mattress, palm up, but not close enough to crowd her.

A quiet sob escapes Ava’s mouth. Then another one.

“I’m defective,” she whispers eventually, looking at Sara with big, wet eyes.

For a second, she doesn’t even understand what the other woman _means_ but then it hits her.

“What’s going on, babe?”

Ava keeps sobbing and Sara keeps gently rubbing her thumb across her girlfriend’s knuckles until the blonde eventually calms down enough to speak.

“You deserve better than me. You deserve someone real. Someone who isn’t—isn’t faulty.”

And Sara’s heart breaks.

She genuinely thought they were past this. Not that she wants to diminish the effects and validity of Ava’s trauma, but—based on how the other woman talked about it now— Sara assumed that she had come to terms with her... origins.

 _Apparently not_.

Carefully, she reaches out to cup a tear-stained cheek.

“Baby,” she says, tilting Ava’s head up so the other woman is looking at her. “You’re the best thing to have ever happened to me.”


	12. “You’ve got a fever. Of course I’m not going anywhere.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short but (hopefully) sweet.

They’re supposed to see Hamilton tonight because Ava has finally managed to get her hands on some tickets. Good ones as well, right in the centre of the orchestra section.

She’s been giddy all week because, after listening to the cast album for the better part of the last year, she’s sure she can deliver a pretty flawless rendition of “Guns and Ships” (not that she would ever sing along at the theater—she has manners, thank you very much).

But then Sara began to feel unwell last night and what started as a sore throat quickly turned into muscle aches, shivers, and a 103 degree fever.

So now Sara is in bed—covers up to her nose and half a drug store on the nightstand next to her—and definitely not seeing Hamilton tonight. But, as she drifts in and out of a restless slumber, she keeps insisting that Ava should still go.

“You’ve got a fever. Of course I’m not going anywhere,” the taller says for what feels like the hundredth time when Sara makes another attempt to convince her that she’ll be fine on her own for three hours.

“But...”

“No buts. You’re more important than some play. End of discussion.”

She strokes a bit of hair out of the blonde’s face and Sara mumbles a soft “M’kay” in response as she drifts off to sleep again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I hallucinate Ava talking about Hamilton tickets at some point on the show or did that really happen?


	13. “I just feel calmer. When I’m with you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone for refreshing my vague memories of Ava mentioning Hamilton tickets yesterday. I genuinely have the worst memory when it comes to tv shows—I've watched 16 seasons of Grey's Anatomy but can never remember what the hell is going on or who any of the side characters even are, no matter if it's been a day, a week, or a year since the last episode 🙈

“What do you want to do for date night tonight?” Ava asked as she stepped into their quarters where Sara was sitting on the bed, a crossword puzzle in her hands. “We could go to that new Indian restaurant we’ve wanted to try for a while? Or salsa dancing?”

Ava loved date night. Not even because of the things they did, but because it meant she got some (mostly uninterrupted) quality time with her girlfriend every week. True, they lived together, worked together, and, thus, saw each other literally 24/7, but she just couldn’t get enough of the other woman.

Sara sighed as she put down the crossword.

“Can we just stay in? Do you mind?”

It was only then that Ava noticed Sara was already in her pajamas.

“Of course, babe,” she agreed immediately, eyebrows knitting together in concern. Was Sara getting sick? Was she not feeling well? Was she tired? She had been working a lot recently what with all the encores wreaking havoc across the timeline.

“I’m fine, don’t worry,” Sara said then as if she was able to read Ava’s mind. “You’ve just turned me into a boring old lady.”

She pouted—looking absolutely adorable in the process—and Ava couldn’t help but laugh.

“I’m... sorry?” she offered, stepping closer to the bed and her girlfriend.

Sara took her hand as soon as she was within reach. Her face turned serious.

“No. _No_. It’s good, actually! I just feel—” she paused, trying to find the right words to say what she was feeling “—calmer. When I’m with you.”

She looked down at their intertwined fingers.

“It’s like I don’t need to run from everything all the time anymore.”

Ava’s heart skipped a beat at that. At what it meant. At what _she_ meant to Sara.

She’d never been one to believe in soulmates or true love—she was way too cynical for those things—but Sara just _got_ her in a way that nobody else had before (and vice versa), so maybe she had to re-evaluate her position.

Pulling the other woman closer by the hand that was still in her own, she pressed a kiss to her forehead. The tip of her nose. The corner of her mouth. Until Sara tilted her head slightly and their lips met; softly at first but the smaller woman was trying hard to deepen the kiss.

Ava smiled into the kiss before pulling back a little and saying, “Just for the record: you could never be boring.”


	14. “What are you doing up? Come to bed.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm literally stress-posting this as I wait for the Galaxy Con panel to start. AHHHHHHHHH!!!

Sara scrunches up her face. Grumbles. Turns.

She doesn’t know how late it is, exactly, but she senses that it is way too early to be awake right now.

Almost automatically her hand reaches out to the other side of the bed but, instead of being met with the solid body of her girlfriend, it comes up empty.

She opens her eyes.

Ava isn’t there.

_Huh._

Maybe she’s just gone to the toilet. Or to get a drink of water.

Sara reaches behind herself for her phone. When she presses the button on the side it lights up. 3.35AM.

She closes her eyes again, phone still clutched in her hands. No need to even try and fall asleep again until Ava comes back because—as much as she hates to admit it—these days she’s having a pretty difficult time drifting off without the other woman next to her.

A couple of minutes later Ava still hasn’t returned, so Sara decides to get up and have a look.

The hallway is dark except for a strip of light at the bottom of the wall guiding her toward the bridge.

Ava isn’t there. She isn’t in the office either. Or the bathroom. Or the kitchen.

Eventually, Sara finds her in the library.

She’s sitting cross legged on one of the chairs, laptop on the desk in front of her.

“Babe,” Sara says and the other woman visibly jumps before looking up from her screen. “What are you doing up? Come back to bed.”

Ava grimaces.

“Did I wake you up? I’m so sorry, babe.”

“It’s fine, don’t worry.”

Sara rubs a hand across her face, yawning, as she steps closer to the desk.

“What the hell are you doing, though?”

For a second she thinks it might actually be paperwork—Ava is insane like that, sometimes—but she doesn’t have her paperwork face on right now so it must be something else.

“Watching _Orange is the New Black_ ,” Ava says, looking sheepish.

“In the middle of the night? Why?”

She knows Ava loves the show, has seen every single episode and has been counting down the days until—

“The final season just came out. I wanted to watch it before anyone could spoil anything for me.”

Sara smiles at the enthusiasm on her face.

“Come back to bed. Watch it there.”

Ava’s brows furrow.

“Are you sure, babe? I don’t want to keep you awake.”

“And I don’t want to be in bed without you.”


	15. “You’re cold. Come here.”

They decided to watch the fireworks outside this year. Make it romantic. A blanket. A picnic. The whole shebang.

It sounded like a good idea—in theory, from the comfort of their bedroom.

They don’t even care about New Year’s, for God’s sake. They live on a time ship. They time travel for work. The concept of time—and the real world’s holidays and celebrations associated with it—really lose their significance in a situation like that.

But, still, here they are, on a meadow in a park overlooking the city.

They’re both wearing their puffiest winter coats but it’s still freezing—something that, for some reason, they hadn’t taking into account in planning this little adventure.

Ava is doing slightly better than Sara, probably thanks to her engineering. She’s chilly, yes, but at least she isn’t shivering.

She’s offered to go back to the Waverider half a dozen times by now. Or to get the jump ship and sit inside. Or to have Gideon fabricate them a space heater.

But Sara keeps insisting that she’s fine. That it isn’t _that_ cold. That being outside in the winter is healthy.

Ava has her doubts about that one.

It’s almost midnight and people around them are starting to get antsy and standing up in preparation to watch the fireworks so, eventually, they do, too.

“You’re _cold_ ,” Ava tries again because she can literally see Sara shivering beside her. Yes, the woman might be a professionally trained assassin and able to withstand conditions and situations that would knock out anyone else in an instant but that doesn’t mean that she’s immune to temperatures below forty degrees.

Sara is about to protest that she’s _fine_ when Ava unzips her jacket, successfully shutting the other woman up.

“Come here,” she says, holding the jacket open and motioning with her head for Sara to join her.

For a second, Sara just looks at her, slightly confused, but then a smile appears on her face as she steps toward her girlfriend. Once she’s right in front of her, she reaches out, wraps her arms around Ava’s torso, pulls her close, snuggles against her chest. Her cold nose brushes the taller woman’s neck.

Ava pulls the jacket closed around the both of them, pressing a kiss against blonde hair.

“Better?”

“Better,” Sara confirms as the first firecracker explodes in the sky.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Inspired—like the title of this whole thing—by one of my all time favorite films, Imagine Me and You. (Which I know is absolute rom-com garbage, but it's MY rom-com garbage, ok?)
> 
> Also, I'm starting a new job tomorrow so I'm not sure if I'll be able to post at my usual time. I will post, though, so don't worry!


	16. "Stay."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Throwing it all the way back to S03E12. Or, rather, the aftermath of that episode.
> 
> Y'all asked for this...

You come on her fingers for the third time that night, hair sticking to your forehead and sweat coating your skin. You shudder. Moan. Bite your lips. Your knuckles are white from how hard you’re gripping the sheets.

When it’s over, you sink into the pillows, spent, and Sara pulls out of you before unceremoniously wiping her hand off on the duvet.

Now, you’ve had good sex before—maybe even great sex—but something about sex with Sara is different. Better. It’s definitely the best sex you’ve ever had—Sara is strong, eager, knows what to do, where to touch, lick, bite in this visceral way that can’t be learned. (But you’re not going to tell her any of that anytime soon because she is already cocky enough as it is.)

The bottom line is: you’re exhausted. Sore in places you’ve not been sore in in a while. And now you need to get out of here as fast as you can because there’s no way you will make the mistake of trying to cuddle with Sara Lance, of all people.

You know that your underwear is somewhere in the far corner of the room because Sara literally ripped it down your legs and then threw it behind herself in an attempt to get to your pussy as fast as humanly possible. It was actually kind of hot—in the heat of the moment.

So you get up from the mattress, locate the black thong immediately where it’s lying on the armchair. It’s not until you pull it on that Sara asks, “What are you doing?” in a surprised tone.

Her surprise, in turn, surprises you.

“Leaving?”

It comes out more unsure than you would have liked but with how you literally _begged_ Sara to eat you out earlier, any kind of farouche vibe you have tried to cultivate in the past few weeks is out the window, anyway.

“Why?”

Sara sounds genuinely puzzled and you hate how it makes your heart flutter, just a little bit.

“Because,” you start, but can’t think of a reason that doesn’t sound absolutely pathetic. You run your tongue over your bottom lip. Think.

“Because…?” Sara echoes and you hate how gorgeous she looks half-naked on the bed, hair mussed. You turn away.

“Because I’m not sure that I’m ready for you to wake up to the realization that this was a one time thing. Or a mistake.”

You say it fast—like you’re ripping off a band aid.

“Ava—”

You shrug.

“It’s fine, I get it.”

“ _Ava_ ,” she says again, more forceful this time.

Your shoulders drop and turn to look at her.

Her face is soft, open.

“Stay.”

_Oh._

“Are you sure?”

She laughs.

“Yes, I’m sure. Now stop being an idiot and come back to bed.”


	17. "I love you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sleep-deprived, stressed, and hangry because my new job is... a lot. So I'm sure this is absolute trash and I could've done a way better job if I had more than 5 minutes to write a day. Maybe I will in the future, who knows.

“I hate you,” Ava grunted before letting out a bloodcurdling cry. Her face was red, sweat on her brow, her hair half up in a bun and half down around her shoulders.

“This is your fault.”

Technically, it wasn’t even really Sara’s fault—if it was anyone’s _fault_ at all—but the blonde had had a hand in this _situation_ , yes. It hadn’t been her idea, though. Ava had brought it up one night, out of the blue, and Sara had considered it, thought about it seriously for the first time ever—and then come to the conclusion that she wanted it as well. So, no, it wasn’t her fault.

“You did this to me.”

Ava's nails dug deeper into the skin of Sara's hand.

“Son of a _bitch_.”

Truly, Sara had never heard her girlfriend swear this much. The occasional “shit” or “fuck”? Yes, sure. Maybe even a “motherfucker” every now and again. But this was new. Under the circumstances, though, Sara couldn’t blame her. She was sure she would be cursing Jesus, Mary, _and_ Joseph if she were in Ava’s place.

“You’re doing great, babe,” Sara said because everyone had told her that was what she should be saying in this situation—‘You’re doing great,’ ‘Almost there,’ ‘Only one more.’ Positive affirmation and all that. (She wasn’t sure it was working, even though Ava really was doing great.)

“Fuck y—” Ava started but was interrupted by a new wave of pain and ended in another cry instead.

“One more, Ava. _Push_."

They’d been at it for over twelve hours already and, at this point, she was beyond exhausted.

“I can’t do it.”

She let her head fall against the pillow behind her.

The blonde was close to tears, Sara could tell from the look on her face, and she reached out with her free hand, pushing some hair out of Ava’s face.

“Baby, listen to me. You’ve done things that were way harder than this. Remember when you fought your own clones? That was hard. An immortal Rasputin? You literally went to hell. This is a piece of cake.”

“I can’t,” Ava whined.

“Yes, you can.”

Sara squeezed her hand, willing her to find some more strength somewhere. Just a little bit.

Ava took a deep breath.

“Ok. _Ok_.”

She sat back up. Gritted her teeth. Cried Out. _Pushed_. And then went completely slack.

It was silent in the room for just a moment. Until—

A high-pitched wail.

Sara gasped. Realistically, she'd know that that would be the outcome of this whole event, but still. It hadn't actually hit her until just then.

“Congratulations, ladies. A healthy, beautiful little girl,” the midwife in between Ava's legs announced, holding a tiny human wrapped in a blue and white blanket toward them.

“Oh my God,” Ava breathed, wonder clear in her voice as the baby was put in her arms. “Look at her, Sara. _Look at her_.”

She ran a finger across the baby’s cheek before turning her head to face Sara.

“I love you."

She looked back down at her daughter.

"I love you so much."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I might have to put this challenge on a short hiatus until I sort my life out.


	18. “If anything happened to you—I couldn’t…”

“So, Charlie told me something interesting just now,” Ava said in lieu of a greeting as she walked into their shared quarters.

They hadn’t seen each other all day, Sara being busy with Atropos and Ava trying to help Rory with his long-lost daughter situation.

The taller woman stopped at the foot of the bed, arms crossed in front of her chest.

“Anything you want to tell me?”

Sara’s brows furrowed in confusion.

“No?”

Ava tilted her head to the side.

“Really? Nothing?”

Sara was wracking her brain but couldn’t for the life of her think of anything Charlie could’ve possibly said to her girlfriend that would justify—whatever this was.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about, babe,” the blonde answered truthfully, putting the crossword she’d only half-heartedly been trying to solve while waiting for the other woman to get home to the side.

“Oh, so you didn’t see Atropos’ true form earlier? You know, the thing that’s supposed to kill you?”

 _Shit_.

Ava’s lips were pressed together in a thin line, one eyebrow arched up—all the telltale signs that she was barely holding it together.

“I’m fine,” Sara assured her, getting up from the bed and taking a step toward the other woman.

“You _died_!”

“Nothing I haven’t done before,” the blonde joked, shrugging.

“ _Sara_.”

Ava's tone was low. Warning.

The woman in questions stepped closer.

“I promise you, I’m fine,” she said, taking a hold of Ava’s forearms and untangling them so she could hold her hands.

When Sara gave her fingers a reassuring squeeze, Ava’s bottom lip began to wobble.

“If anything happened to you—I couldn’t...”

Her voice cracked.

“Babe, hey.” Sara pulled her closer. “I’m right here, I’m not dead. You don’t have to worry.”

“But I do,” she whispered before a single tear ran down her right cheek.

Instead of answering, Sara pressed her lips against said cheek, effectively catching the tear. She pressed her lips against the corner of Ava’s mouth. Her other cheek. Her forehead.

“I’m here,” she promised, wrapping her arms around her girlfriend as she started crying in earnest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cause I feel like we never actually got Ava's reaction to that whole thing?


	19. “Tell me what happened.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Had a 12 hour day at work today and don't have any stories written in advance anymore. But better late than never, I guess.
> 
> Trigger warning: mentions of sexual assault.

“There you go,” Sara said, re-appearing next to her girlfriend and putting a gin and tonic into her hand.

They were at a club—a rare occurrence these days since, generally, they preferred the peace and quiet of a night in to masses of sweaty people and deafeningly loud music—because they’d both felt like dancing. And danced they had, with Sara’s ass grinding against Ava’s front in a way that was almost indecent.

“Thanks.”

Just from the tone of Ava’s voice Sara could tell that something had happened while she’d been gone to get them drinks from the bar. She sounded upset, tense—and she looked it, too—a far cry from the smiling, laughing woman Sara had left behind a few minutes ago.

Sara put a gentle hand on her elbow.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” the blonde replied a little too fast, which was another dead giveaway that something was definitely, one hundred percent, very, _very_ wrong.

“Babe.” She moved her hand from Ava’s elbow to her waist. “Tell me what happened.”

Ava shook her head.

“It doesn’t matter.”

“It does.”

She sighed.

“This guy just—”

Sara’s hold on Ava tightened. Nothing good ever started with, "This guy."

“What did he do?” she growled.

Trying to avoid looking at her girlfriend, the taller woman looked down to the floor instead as she quietly said, “He—he grabbed my ass.”

Sara had only one question in return.

“Who?”

“Sara,” the other woman said warningly before putting her hand on the blonde’s upper arm in an attempt to calm her down.

“ _Who_?”

After a brief moment of hesitation—and because she knew Sara wouldn’t just let this go—she pointed to her right.

“The blond one over there.”

Sara turned her head to look at him, barely able to contain the rage she felt. It wasn’t even that she thought Ava belonged to her or some equally patriarchal bullshit—it was the fact that the other woman had been violated in this way that made Sara’s blood boil.

No woman should ever have to be touched against her will.

So she did the only appropriate thing in this situation.

She hollered, “Hey asshole!” across the club before walking over in three quick strides and punching the guy square in the face.


	20. "I've got you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to say thank you for all your comments. I don't have enough time to answer at the moment, but they always put a smile on my face and keep me going when I have a long, stressful day and think how much easier it would be to just not write today.

In hindsight, Sara could see that she’d made a serious error in judgement.

It didn’t happen often, but when it did, she always fucked up _real_ bad. This was one of those times.

Ava had taken the lead on today's mission and it wasn’t like Sara didn’t trust her girlfriend’s leadership abilities—she definitely, one hundred percent did. She’d just genuinely thought she could take on Tigress on her own and save the team the hassle.

And now here she was on the roof of the highest building in Star City with no weapon, no plan, and no way to get a hold of the rest of the team.

The fight with Tigress had been going on for the better part of ten minutes and she hadn’t made any significant progress so far. On the contrary, Sara had backed further and further toward the edge of the roof with every move.

Another sudden attack meant that the blonde took another step back—but instead of solid ground she stepped on nothing but air.

Surprised, she lost her footing. Stumbled. _Fell_.

Her first and only thought was that Ava would kill her when she found out she’d died (again). She really had to stop doing this.

Before she could even come close to hitting the ground some three hundred feet down, though, a strong hand wrapped around her wrist, effectively stopping her free fall.

“I’ve got you,” she heard Ava’s voice from above a second later. “Give me your other hand.”

For once in her life, the blonde did as she was told.

As soon as Ava had pulled her back onto the roof, Sara scrambled to her feet, heart still hammering in her chest from yet another near-death experience.

She looked over at her girlfriend who stood there with her arms crossed in front of her chest—as well as what someone who didn’t know Ava as well as Sara did would call a displeased expression.

(But Sara could read between the lines. She saw the worry. The relief. Saw that Ava wasn’t actually mad at her.)

“I thought I told you not to try and play the hero.”

(Well, maybe at least not _that_ mad.)

“Maybe I just like it when you save me, Captain,” she said with a smirk as she reached for the other woman.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yesterday, Sara saved Ava. Today, Ava saves Sara because we love that these women are true equals, have each other's backs, and save each other's lives on the reg.


	21. "I won't let anything happen to you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Set at some point between "Ship Broken" and "Freaks and Greeks."

They’re in bed, the room dark around them except for a strip of light underneath the door—not that Sara could see it even if her eyes were open. Because Sara is still blind.

It’s been a week and they’re no closer to solving any of their current problems—the Encores, the Fates, Sara’s predicament. A week of trying to find a way to use the Loom and coming up empty.

“How are you doing?” Ava asks into the darkness eventually because she knows her girlfriend isn’t asleep yet.

“I’m fine.”

Ava’s on her side, facing Sara, and she reaches out, running a hand over a soft cheek before placing it plan down on the other woman's chest.

“Babe, it’s just the two of us. You don’t have to put on a brave face,” she says quietly as her thumb moves back and forth over Sara’s skin in what she hopes is a soothing motion. “So let’s try this again. How are you doing?”

“I—”

The blonde sighs.

“I’m worried. I don’t even know how I’m not dead right now. _Why_ I’m not dead right now.”

She swallows.

“What if there are long term effects? Or if she tries again?”

The urge to reassure the other woman, to tell her that everything will be ok—even though Ava can’t _know_ that, can’t promise anything—is so strong that she has to bite down on her bottom lip to physically stop herself from doing it. Because she can sense that Sara has more to say.

So she stays quiet. She waits. Listens to the rhythm of the blonde’s breathing. Feels her chest rise and fall underneath her fingers.

“I’ve never really been afraid before. But I guess now I have something to lose,” Sara finally says before she turns onto her side as well. For a moment, they’re face to face and although Ava knows that the blonde can’t actually see, it seems like Sara is regarding her, studying her.

Then she reaches out, her hand making contact with Ava’s stomach, moving to her waist, around her back. She scoots over, closer to Ava who pulls her in, wraps her arms around the other woman and doesn’t let go.

“I won’t let anything happen to you,” she promises, pressing a kiss into Sara’s hair.

She can feel Sara smile against her neck in response.

“I know.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Because I'm always a slut for a soft Avalance moment 🥰


	22. “Take my hand—and stay close.”

Ava had never liked large crowds. Something about being surrounded by masses of people, being pushed around, not having a clear way out. It didn’t scare her, exactly, just—put her on edge.

The fact that pretty much everyone currently around her was queer, happy, and harmless didn’t change that.

She’d never been to Pride before, though that did not necessarily have anything to do with the crowds. It was more that she didn’t really feel gay enough. She knew it sounded stupid because she was an out lesbian and had been for as long as she could remember. She’d never really been in the closet, wasn’t hiding her sexuality in either her private or professional life. So the fact that she wasn’t sporting rainbow gear on the regular shouldn’t mean that she was somehow less than. Still, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she didn’t quite fit in.

Sara was similar in that way. She owned her bisexuality proudly every single day but didn’t really have close ties to the larger community. Maybe it had to do with the fact that they were time traveling superheroes and didn’t really have much time for Sunday brunches or Dykes on Bikes.

But here she was, right in the middle of New York City Pride, a sea of rainbows stretching out in every possible direction. “I’m Coming Out” was blasting from somewhere in the distance and Ava had lost count of the number of people who’d bumped into her already as the two of them were cutting through the crowd in an attempt to try to find a good spot to watch the parade from.

A person on her right suddenly lurched back then and Ava instinctively took a step to the side to avoid being trampled. _Idiot_.

When she turned around again, Sara was gone.

Immediately, her heart started to beat faster.

This was _exactly_ what she’d been afraid of, losing the other woman among all these people. She didn’t even know where she was right now—somewhere on Fifth Avenue—because this had been Sara’s idea to begin with and she’d let the other woman take the lead. She was trying to be less pedantic these days, to give up control every now and again and not have to be in charge all the time. A decision she wholeheartedly regretted in this moment.

“Ava,” she heard a familiar voice to her left then, which effectively stopped her impeding panic attack. She looked up just in time to see the crowd part to reveal her girlfriend, who seemed to know exactly what was going on in Ava’s head judging by the concerned expression on her face.

“Take my hand—” the blonde instructed as she took a step toward Ava and wrapped her fingers firmly around her girlfriend’s before she tugged slightly, which caused Ava to stumble toward her, chest bumping against Sara’s shoulder.

They were much closer than before—Sara’s breath ghosting across Ava's cheek—and the taller woman could feel her anxiety ebb away.

“—and stay close.”

With that, Sara set off again, not letting go of Ava’s hand for the rest of the day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This might be wildly OOC, I'm not sure. Let me know?


	23. “I’ve never noticed this scar before.”

The only thing Ava liked more than having sex with Sara were the minutes after, when they were coming down from their high and trying to slow their breathing, to calm their rapidly beating hearts.

While the sex was all red hot passion and impatient fingers, lips, tongues, the aftermath was soft, almost lazy.

Today was no different.

Sara was lying on her back, one hand on her chest right over her heart, and Ava was curled around her lower half, head resting on the other woman’s hip bone.

Ava could smell her, taste her on her tongue still, and she was itching to go again even though she was already exhausted from the three orgasms she’d had in the last hour and a half.

So, instead, she contented herself with basking in the afterglow of their evening for the time being, a hand on Sara’s thigh, when a scar just right of her own thumb caught her eye.

It was faint, barely visible against Sara’s pale skin. She ran her thumb over it.

She loved these moments—the quiet, the intimacy. She loved exploring Sara’s body, which was like a map of experiences, of stories—the other woman's history literally etched into her skin for Ava to discover.

This was only the third time they’d slept together, the third time Ava had gotten to see Sara in all her naked glory. The whole thing was still new—infinitely exciting—and the taller woman couldn’t help but think that she’d never tire of learning new things about Sara, finding little marks, little quirks.

There was the mole on the underside of her left breast. The muscles of her abdomen as they flexed when she came. And the scars.

They were all over Sara’s body, some smaller, less visible, others large and impossible to hide. Ava was able to guess the origin of most of them—appendicitis when she was a teenager, a stab between the sixth and seventh rib from her time in the League, three arrows to the chest on a rooftop in Starling City—based on the information she’d read in her file all those years ago.

“I never noticed this scar before,” Ava said absentmindedly, thumb still tracing the fine line on the side of the other woman’s thigh. She wasn’t really looking for an explanation—it was more of an observation, a thought spoken out loud. But Sara gave her one, anyway.

“When I was five, Laurel and I begged our parents to get us a cat. For weeks we would not shut up about it until they finally gave in and took us to a shelter where we got to pick one. And then, on the second or third day we had him, the damn thing scratched me when I was trying to play with him. It was bleeding and it hurt like hell and my dad took me to the hospital. I even had to get a tetanus shot. I’ve disliked cats ever since.”

“What was he called?”

“Whiskers.”

Ava smiled against Sara’s leg before shifting slightly to gently press her lips to the scar.

“I love cats,” she said, looking up at the blonde.

“Oh, I’m well aware that you love _pussy_.”

The way she said the word sent a shiver down Ava's spine.

Sara chuckled at her own joke.

“Jerk,” Ava chided, swatting the blonde’s thigh as she slid back in-between her legs to show the other woman just how much of a pussy-lover she really was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't even know what this is but I couldn't get the image of post-sex Ava with her head on Sara's hip bone out of my head so here we are.


	24. “Wait! Please—I’m sorry, just—wait.”

At this point, Sara couldn’t even remember what they were fighting about in the first place. All she knew was that it had started small. With something mundane, something stupid. A simple miscommunication, nothing more.

They didn’t fight often—way less than Sara had anticipated based on how fundamentally different their personalities were—but when they did, they really gave it their all. Both of them could be absolutely vicious—cruel, even—and they really were in top form tonight.

“Well, maybe if you weren’t so anal-retentive all the time,” Sara snarled in response to the other woman before she could stop herself.

She regretted the words as soon as they were out of her mouth. They had been meant for maximum impact—to hit Ava where it hurt, where she was most insecure—and they worked because, a second later, the blonde's mouth snapped shut, a wounded expression in her eyes.

 _Shit_.

For a moment they just stared at each other in silence, neither woman daring to make the next move.

Then:

“I think it’s better if I leave,” Ava said, resigned. There was no point trying to talk to the other woman right now; she was too hurt to be level-headed any longer.

So she turned, grabbed her jacket from the armchair in the corner, and started walking to the door.

Three steps. That’s how far she got before Sara’s desperate “No!” made her stop dead in her tracks. “Wait! Please—I’m sorry, just—wait,” she pleaded.

Ava took a breath. Closed her eyes. Let out a sigh. Then she turned back around to face the blonde.

“Why?”

The question was barely audible—and not at all what Sara had expected. She gulped.

“Because I’m afraid if you leave now you won’t come back.”

“Maybe that’s for the better.”

“Ava—”

Sara took a careful step closer.

“I don’t want to lose you,” she whispered.

The taller woman crossed her arms in front of her chest.

“I’m afraid calling me ‘anal-retentive’ won’t help you with that.”

Sara had the decency to look ashamed, at least.

“I know, I’m sorry. I—I shouldn’t have said that.”

“But it’s what you think about me.”

Breaking their eye contact, Ava’s gaze drifted to the floor. She was close to tears, but she wasn’t going to give Sara the satisfaction of seeing her cry. Not right now.

“No, it’s not. I think you’re dedicated, and hard-working, and—and _sharp_.”

Sara gave her a lopsided smile as one of her hands reached out to cradle a soft cheek, tilting the other woman’s head upward so she had to look at her again.

“Will you stay? Please?”

Ava didn’t answer right away. Instead, she studied the blonde in front of her. The way her eyes were more intense than she had ever seen them before. Full of regret, and anguish, and affection. The way her brow was furrowed. How her left hand was clenched at her side. Her shoulders tense.

So she did the only thing she could do—she nodded—and felt Sara’s lip press against her forehead in relief a moment later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Took me 24 full days to get to the drama but I just had to with this prompt, sorry.


	25. "Here. Sit next to me."

Ava was going to kill Rip. Murder him with her own two hands. Tear him apart piece by piece for what he’d done to her. “A good idea,” he’d said—“a strategic move”—working together with the Legends.

More like the stupidest idea he had ever had.

But he was the boss, which was why Ava was currently—and very awkwardly—standing in the doorway of the Waverider’s office, unsure of what to do.

(She hated being unsure, even more than cold coffee or wrinkles in her white shirts.)

The Legends where strewn across the room in various sitting, kneeling, and lying positions, obviously feeling at home on their ship. It definitely wasn’t the most efficient way to do a mission briefing—Ava would’ve much preferred a nice conference table—but it wasn’t like she had a choice in the matter because, technically, she wasn’t in charge. Sara Lance was.

The very woman who, at the moment, was draped across an armchair in the far corner of the room, feet dangling over one side.

Ava had to restrain herself from telling her to sit up straight, for God’s sake.

She wasn’t actually sure what they were even waiting for. Everyone was here and the meeting should’ve started three minutes ago. Of course the Legends weren’t ones for punctuality. This was going to drive her insane.

Her foot started tapping impatiently against the floor almost on its own accord and Sara looked up, locking eyes with her.

The captain was still pissed at Rip for his latest, very transparent attempt to keep them on a tight leash. “A first step to mutual appreciation,” he’d called it but, in reality, it was nothing more than supervision.

They didn’t need a babysitter, thank you very much. Especially not one as pedantic and annoying as Agent Sharpe.

So Sara had decided to turn this whole thing into a game to see just how far she could push the other woman. She wanted to make her squirm, to lose her cool, and the first step to doing that was starting late.

It was currently four minutes past eleven and Ava was practically vibrating with barely contained rage. If looks could kill, Sara was pretty sure she’d need another trip to the Lazarus Pit to finish this briefing. Probably a good time to begin.

“Alright children, settle down,” she announced, taking her legs off the armrest of the chair she was in and sitting up a little straighter. “Everybody take a seat.”

Ava was the only one still standing.

The blonde subtly looked around the room, but there was no space for her anywhere except for the floor and Sara was one hundred percent sure the other woman would rather walk right out of this meeting and quit her job than get her stupid polyblend pantsuit dirty.

“Here. Sit next to me,” Sara offered—unsure if she was trying to ease the other woman's obvious discomfort or rattle her even more—as she scooted to one side of the armchair, patting the cushion to her right. It would be a tight fit.

Ava’s brows furrowed before her look of confusion quickly morphed into outright suspicion.

_Of course._

The taller woman didn’t make a move to sit down, so Sara tried again, a little more brazen this time.

“Come on, Agent Sharpe. I don’t bite,” she smirked, making sure to look the other woman straight in the eye when she added, “Unless you ask nicely.”

The blush that appeared on Ava’s face was instantaneous, expression somewhere between disbelief and outrage, and Sara’s smirk only grew.

She half expected the other woman to storm out and portal back to the Time Bureau but, instead, she just rolled her eyes before crossing the room in five quick strides and squeezing in next to Sara.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I swear these get longer and longer every day...


	26. "If you go, I go, too."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning: description of panic attacks. Well, one panic attack.

The feeling comes over you suddenly, without warning. One second, you were enjoying yourself, dancing with your girlfriend, and, the next thing you know, it’s like the walls are closing in on you and you can’t breath.

If you were thinking rationally, you’d know that what you’re experiencing right now is a panic attack. But you’re not thinking rationally at all so, instead, you push through the people to hurry off the dance floor.

You’re halfway to the exit—where it’s calm, and cold, and quiet—when you feel a hand on your wrist.

“Babe, are you ok? What’s going on?”

_Sara._

“I—I need to go,” you mumble, more to yourself than to her. There’s no way to explain, no way to express _what_ and _how_ and _why_. But then a feeling of dread pools in the pit of your stomach. You’re ruining everything. The entire night out, the fun you have been having.

You gulp, look at Sara.

And you can see in her face that she knows exactly what’s going on right now. There’s worry there. Understanding.

She doesn’t look mad, not at all, but there’s a voice in your head screaming that you are nothing but a burden, an inconvenience. That you spoiled Sara’s night, her fun— _your relationship_.

The pressure on your chest gets harder.

It’s like something is clawing painfully at your ribcage, trying to tear you apart from the inside out. Teasing you. Taunting you.

Your next breath comes out ragged.

“You can stay, we only just got here. I’m fine just—”

“If you go, I go too.”

The vehemency in her voice is what finally gets through to you.

You blink.

“Can I take your hand?” she asks, holding her own outstretched one toward you carefully.

For a while, you just stare at it—the slim, long fingers, the various rings you know so well, the short nails—before you nod and, immediately, her palm connects with yours.

The sense of calm that washes over you at the contact is both immense and immediate.


	27. "Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?"

It’s 2.43AM and she’s absolutely exhausted. There’s a giant stain on her shirt, her hair is sticking up at various odd angles, and she can’t actually remember the last time she’s taken a shower because from one moment to next her life has changed forever. Because now there’s a tiny human who needs her attention twenty-four hours a day. Because she's a _mother_ now.

Her body has done this beautiful, magnificent, miraculous thing but she’s never felt worse about herself. There’s all the extra fat, especially around her belly, the stretch marks littering her skin, the bags under eyes from lack of sleep.

And she doesn’t want to feel like this—doesn’t want to think these things—but she just can’t help herself when her hormones are all over the place.

It'll sort itself out eventually.

She yawns, re-adjusting the baby in her arms.

“Do you have any idea how beautiful you are?” she suddenly hears from the doorway and when she looks up, Sara is there, a tender expression on her face.

“I look terrible,” she replies because she _does_.

Sara takes a couple of steps into the room.

“No, you’re beautiful. Look at you, _you did this_.” She gestures to the baby still suckling peacefully, already halfway back to sleep. “Your body made a whole new human.”

“But now I have stretch marks and belly fat and saggy boobs.”

One of Sara's hands reaches for her face, gently cradling her cheek. She smiles.

“And you’re beautiful.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know some people aren't into baby fics but I just kind help myself. There is just something so beautiful and tender and *chef's kiss* about them having a baby together.


	28. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another throwback because I was re-watching a couple of scenes today to fill the Avalance-sized hiatus hole in my heart. But at least we have a few virtual con appearances coming up, I guess?

Sara had expected a lecture. More than that, she had expected to be reprimanded—and possibly even expropriated with regard to the level 12 anachronism they currently had on their hands. What she hadn’t expected was Ava expressing her sincere condolences about Stein’s death.

She hadn’t known the other woman had emotions—or manners, for that matter.

But today seemed to be a day full of surprises because next up she surprised herself by asking the other woman for help, which was something she never thought she’d do. _Ever_.

Surprise number three came right after when she heard a portal open behind herself.

“Alright. What’s the plan?” the taller woman asked as she stepped foot onto the Waverider in all her polyblend-suited glory.

Sara gulped at the sight.

It was the first time she had seen the agent with her hair down and she definitely hadn’t been prepared for that. Because the blonde looked _hot_.

(Not that she wasn’t attractive with her usual tight bun—she definitely was—but something about her surprisingly long hair cascading down her shoulder in waves caused Sara’s stomach to drop in a very familiar way.

It made the older woman look softer, somehow. Less stringent. Like someone Sara might maybe, potentially actually like.

The smirk playing around Ava’s lips only made that feeling stronger.)

Sara was standing there like an idiot, she knew she was, but she couldn’t for the life of her think of something to say. The realization that she didn’t actually hate Ava—that, on the contrary, she was very much attracted to her—had hit her with such unexpected, violent force that her brain had literally short-circuited. All she could do was stare at the woman in front of her with this overwhelming feeling that something had shifted between them. Something big.

Every interaction she had ever had with Ava ran through her head, from their first encounter at the Time Bureau to their trade off involving Rip’s arrest. All those thinly veiled threats. All those _looks_.

Sara had the sudden urge to kiss the blonde in front of her then, just to see how she would react, to see if the line they’d been toeing since day one had actually just been sexual tension this whole time. (Deep down, Sara knew that it had been. She had just been too pre-occupied with resenting the other woman to see it.)

Ava’s “What?” was what finally startled her out of her own head again.

The older woman’s brow was furrowed in confusion.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”


	29. “This is nice. You and me. Against the world.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short but sweet.

After they defeat Neron at Heyworld, they rent a small camper van. It’s Ava’s idea, some quiet time for just the two of them, and Sara is happy to go along with whatever as long as it means that she gets to be with her girlfriend.

So they drive through Oregon, stopping at mountains and lakes and the ocean, eating a lot of canned food, sleeping in the back of the van. Sara gets them lost a couple of times but it doesn’t even matter in the grand scheme of things because they discover a cute little diner to have lunch at, and a vineyard owned by an adorable old lady who insists that they stay the night and try some of her vintage rosé.

Getting lost also brought them to where they are right now, a secluded lake with a perfect view of Mt. Hood. There’s no one else around, the only sounds coming from birds and crickets and _nature_. It’s peaceful, calm, and they’re sitting on the mattress in the boot just taking it all in: how the sun is slowly disappearing behind the mountain, the fireflies flitting around them, the sleek expanse of dark, cold water out front.

(They went skinny dipping in that very water earlier because Ava admitted she’s never done it and Sara was so scandalized that she immediately ordered her to strip before pulling her toward the lake.)

Sara is in-between Ava’s legs, back leaning against the taller woman’s front, Ava’s arms around her torso, and for the first time in a long time she is completely relaxed. There’s nothing to worry about, no villains to fight or timelines to save. Just her and the woman she loves.

Ava’s mouth finds the side of her neck, press a kiss to where it meets her left shoulder, then over to the top of her spine. Another kiss there before the other woman turns her head and leans it against Sara’s back.

“This is nice,” she murmurs deep in her throat, pulling Sara even closer toward herself. “You and me. Against the world.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was gonna have them fight something/someone together but then I thought—you know what, these gals deserve a holiday.


	30. “Wake up. Come on, there’s something I want to show you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Second to last day, y’all... 😢

“Babe,” she half hissed, half whispered as she stepped closer to the bed her girlfriend was currently asleep in. She didn’t usually try and stand between Sara and her precious sleep—the other woman definitely _wasn’t_ a morning person—but she was pretty sure that this counted as exceptional circumstances (and that she would be madder if Ava _didn’t_ wake her up).

As expected, she turned around and buried her head deeper into the pillow.

“Sara,” Ava tried again, a little louder this time, running a hand down the blonde’s arm. “Wake up.”

Sara let out an unhappy noise somewhere between a whine and a growl.

“Come on, there’s something I want to show you.”

It was then that Sara finally turned her head toward her girlfriend, desperately trying to rub the sleep from her own eyes.

“What time is it?”

Ava winced.

“6.03.”

“Ugh,” the blonde groaned, lying completely still for a moment before she scooted over to the edge of the bed and sat up, feet gliding into her fluffy pink slippers.

“This better be good.”

Ava bit her lip to try and hide the grin she couldn’t quite manage to keep off her face. She was practically vibrating with nerves, and anticipation, and _excitement_.

It wasn’t that she thought Sara would react badly—they had been planning this, after all—it had just happened a lot faster than any of them could have anticipated, so it was definitely a surprise. Everyone else she had talked to had told her that it had taken several tries, sometimes years.

She took the other woman’s hand and pulled her toward the bathroom.

Sara’s brow furrowed with confusion.

“If the toilet is blocked again and you want me to fix it I will—”

The rest of the sentence died on her lips when Ava extended the little blue rectangle toward her. 

It took her a second to process what it said but when she did, her eyes shot up.

“Really?” she asked breathlessly, mouth agape.

“Mhm,” Ava confirmed with a nod, and, immediately, Sara took a step closer before wrapping her arms around the other woman and pulling her into a crushing embrace.

“Oh my God. _Oh my God_.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know—I KNOW—another baby fic but ugh I just want them to have a baby so bad! Last mention of a child during this challenge, though, I promise 🙃


	31. "I trust you."

The whole thing sounded sketchy even to her own ears.

A night in a hotel room with her ex and a woman she’d had a one night stand with once.

It hadn’t been the plan—not even close—but the mission had taken longer than anticipated, they weren’t able to reach the Waverider or any of the rest of the team, and they’d needed to rest. But hotel rooms in 2341 New York City were expensive and, between the three of them, they had only had enough money for a single one. Well, at least it had two beds and Alex had volunteered to sleep on the floor.

It had only been slightly awkward, thank God, but Sara had bigger things to worry about, anyway.

Because, whether Ava liked to admit it or not, Sara knew she had a jealous streak. It was cute, most of the time, and had never really led to any issues in their relationship but it was there. And a night of radio silence coupled with the unfortunate sleeping arrangements Sara had found herself in was sure to set it off.

All the more reason to get this mission over with and go home.

She had spent most of the night trying to come up with what to tell Ava, how to explain this. It wasn't that she was afraid the other woman would have a full on meltdown but, sometimes, she was quick to jump to conclusions, thinking she wasn't (good) enough for Sara—even after all these year. So, really, it was more about protecting Ava from unnecessary heartache.

Sara was just stepping back into the room after her shower, clad in nothing but a white towel, when the front door burst open.

Alex and Nyssa had their weapons in their hands in an instant, prepared to fire at the intruder, when the sound of a familiar voice made the blonde’s stomach drop.

_“Sara!”_

Of course Ava would pick the most inconvenient, suspicious-looking moment to find them.

The taller woman’s eyes settled on her girlfriend, taking in the towel and the wet hair, before moving across the room to the other two women in various states of undress. Slowly, she turned her head to look at Sara once more.

“It’s not what it looks like,” the blonde said before she could come up with a less stupid, less cliché thing to say. She winced.

“Oh? And what does it look like?”

The expression on Ava’s face was unreadable.

“Uhh,” Sara started, turning to the other two women for backup. But they were both staring down at their laps, decidedly _not_ looking at the scene unfolding in front of them, entirely unhelpful. Her shoulders tensed.

“Nothing happened,” she tried again, hoping that was enough to defuse the situation.

For a moment, the other woman looked at her with utter confusion, brows furrowed, before something seemed to dawn on her.

“You think I think you cheated on me?”

She sounded genuinely surprised.

“You don’t?”

“Of course not, babe,” she said, taking a step toward her girlfriend. “I trust you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We made it! There were points where I literally didn't think I'd be able to finish this, where I was stressed and tired and feeling like I'm not a good writer at all, but I did it! Sometime days, I dreaded writing because I had no idea what to do with the prompt but, eventually, something always came to me and I'm proud of myself for that.
> 
> Thank you for sticking with me through it all. For reading, and kudos-ing, and commenting. It means the world to me that you enjoyed reading these little stories. If there's anything you want me to write next feel free to leave it in the comments or find my on tumblr @ co-captainsharpe.


	32. Bonus: "What are you doing?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprise, bitch. I bet you thought you saw the last of me.
> 
> I've got ONE more.

“Babe?”

Ava looks up from the copy of _The Alchemist_ she is currently reading, focusing on the woman next to her on the couch instead.

“Yes?”

“Do you want to find out your gay name?”

Her brows knit together in confusion at the blonde’s words.

“My what?”

“Your gay name,” Sara repeats, and Ava still doesn’t understand what she even means. “I just saw this thing on Facebook. Just go with it, it’ll be fun, I promise.”

If Ava didn’t know any better she’d say her girlfriend is nervous about something. She seems more fidgety than usual as she runs her fingers along the couch cushion. But maybe she’s just imagining it.

Carefully placing a bookmark between the pages, she turns to face the other woman more fully.

“Alright.”

Sara nods. Swallows. Wets her lips.

“Right, so it’s your first name and—”

Suddenly, there’s a small black box in her hand.

“—my last name.”

She pops the box open. In it is a diamond ring.

Ava’s breath catches in her throat at the sight.

She looks up at her girlfriend, face scrunched, incredulous.

“What are you doing?” she whispers and she can feel the tears well in her eyes because, rationally, she knows what a diamond ring in a box means even if Sara hasn’t asked the actual question yet.

“Proposing,” Sara says matter-of-factly, taking one of the other woman’s hands in her own.

She smiles.

“Ava Sharpe, will you marry me?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Based on this tweet: https://bit.ly/3hidlAb)
> 
> Also, I blame Jes Macallan for this because we talked about Avalance maybe, potentially getting married next season yesterday.  
> (She told me she loves me and that the Ava in her head and my head are the same and I—[incoherent gay screaming].)


End file.
